New numbers reveal low and moderate income earners carry a big tax burden in Wisconsin. Jon Peacock with the Wisconsin Council on Children and Families says that’s based on a new study by the Institute on Taxation & Economic Policy, which indicates that low-and middle-income families in Wisconsin pay a much higher share of their income in state and local taxes than do the state’s richest families.
AUDIO: Bob Hague reports (:60 MP3)
While that’s not necessarily a surprising finding, Peacock says the state’s reliance on regressive sales and excise taxes, and on property taxes, could mean tougher times ahead for those low to moderate income taxpayers.
The study claims that when all Wisconsin taxes are totaled up:
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Families earning less than $20,000 — the poorest fifth of Wisconsin non-elderly taxpayers pay 9.2 percent of their income in Wisconsin state and local taxes.
- Middle-income taxpayers — those earning between $35,000 and $57,000 – pay 11.2 percent of their income in Wisconsin state and local taxes.
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The richest taxpayers — with average incomes of $1,116,000 – pay only 8.0% of their income in Wisconsin state and local taxes.
Peacock say the state’s one progressive tax, the income tax, is not enough to offset the unfair impact of those other taxes, which account for the majority of the state’s tax revenue.
